We Know Shockingly Little About What Makes Humanity Prosper
About this episode
Klein interviews Stripe CEO and co-founder Patrick Collison about his 'science of progress' project, launched with economist Tyler Cowen. They examine evidence that science is slowing relative to effort, debate whether the low-hanging fruit is gone, and argue instead that culture, institutions, and mentorship matter more than usually acknowledged. Collison traces how scientific 'hotspots' moved from France to Germany to America, and discusses the cultural mindset behind the Industrial Revolution. The conversation covers the internet's ambiguous effects on innovation, why war may not be the innovation engine people assume, how institutions 'crust over' — NASA versus SpaceX — and the misallocation of talent. Collison also discusses Fast Grants, the pandemic-era experiment in rapid science funding he co-created, which revealed that top scientists spend huge time on grant writing and often don't pursue their most ambitious ideas.